Fergie put her voice in the door

She’s “Glamorous.” Even “Fergalicious.” And she’s a singer for the Black Eyed Peas, the hottest hip-hop group on the planet.

But for Fergie, whose 2006 solo album “The Dutchess” (which is a supposedly intentional misspelling) spawned three No. 1 hits, the road to success wasn’t a smooth ride.

She got into show business early, acting in commercials at age 7, then starring in the children’s TV series “Kids Incorporated.” At just 9 years old, Fergie – real name Stacy Ann Ferguson – provided the voice of Sally Brown in two “Peanuts” specials: “It’s Flashbeagle, Charlie Brown” and “Snoopy’s Getting Married, Charlie Brown.”

“That was a huge thrill for me,” she said. “Watching ‘Flashdance’ and getting to be in the movie ‘Flashbeagle’? That was really cool.”

But like many child performers, adult stardom proved elusive for her.

“I was in the girl group Wild Orchid for 11 years, and a lot of times we would go places and try to perform, and nobody wanted to see us,” says Fergie, 33, touring solo. “We had some good times – we did a 40-city tour with Cher and Cyndi Lauper – but then there were other times when there’d be 10 people there.”

In 1998, Fergie saw the Black Eyed Peas in concert after being inspired by their videos – and everything clicked.

“They were kind of misfits, and I feel like I’m a misfit, so I really could relate with the music they were bringing,” she says. “And I thought, ‘I want to work with them someday.’ ”

Fergie ended up living with her mother, collecting unemployment. But she didn’t give up on her goals.

“At one of my last shows with Wild Orchid, Black Eyed Peas was on the bill,” she says. “Everyone knew we were separating … and so in the hallway I went up to Peas frontman will.i.am. You know, I had to get my hustle on!

“So I told him I’m working on a solo record, and I’m not gonna be with the group anymore. I’ve been a longtime fan of you guys, and I’d love to work with you. So we had phone conversations and all that, but I don’t know if he was too sure of me, you know?”

The old cliché of just getting your foot in the door with the Peas turned out to be prophetic.

“One day, they needed a powerful voice for this song “Shut Up,” and Will’s friend, Dante Santiago, the group’s original singer, said, ‘You should get Ferg – she can really sing this.’ And I came to the studio, and we knocked it out in about half an hour, and from there, he agreed to work with me for my solo stuff.”

As badly as Fergie needed the boost, she still wrestled with the decision to join the Peas.

“I thought, ‘Yes, having a solo record is my dream, and yes, I just got out of a group,’ ” she says, “ ‘but this is a whole new experience, and something I haven’t done … this is gonna be a whole new experience for me and probably make me a better solo artist.’ Which turned out to be true.

“It gave me the confidence to do hip-hop-style music. I was a little bit shy about doing it onstage, and just being with them, I just really found myself as an artist.”

The birthday bunch

Singer Kevin Cronin of REO Speedwagon is 57. Guitarist David Hidalgo of Los Lobos is 54. Actress Elisabeth Shue is 45. Actress Jacqueline Obradors (“NYPD Blue”) is 42. Actor Ioan Gruffudd (“Fantastic Four”) is 35. Actor Jeremy Sisto (“Six Feet Under”) is 34.